If you are familiar with the Women’s Issues Forum (WIF) on campus, you may notice that it no longer exists.  The WIF has changed its name to Students Advocating Gender Awareness (SAGA).

In addition to changing the name of the club, members of the group hoped to change from a informal discussion based group to an organization that takes more political action.

“We didn’t really want the organization to be a forum, like an open discussion group,” Alexandra Allen, secretary ofSAGA, said.  “We really wanted to make sure it was more focused on the E-board and having us work together to create programming … we also didn’t want it to just focus on women, we wanted it to be inclusive of all genders.”

Kari Edgerton, a women and gender studies major and political science minor as well as the vice president of SAGA, believes that it is important to make sure that the organization advocates the inclusion of all genders.

“Most feminists can tell you that a patriarchal society hurts everybody,” Edgerton said. “A patriarchal society came up with gender roles that said that men have to be tough and not show emotion. With the name change, we hope to be more inclusive.”

In the upcoming school year, SAGA hopes to host a talk with Planned Parenthood, specifically because a Planned Parenthood clinic is opening in Auburn Hills.

SAGA will also be taking part in activities that have previously been held at OU.  Take Back the Night, a rally to end sexual abuse, and the Vagina Monologues, a series of monologues written by Eve Ensler, are events that WIF had been involved in during previous school years and SAGA plans to also participate in.

In addition to creating extensive programming, SAGA would like to raise awareness about the resources that the Gender and Sexuality Center (GSC) offers specifically to women. The center offers resources about domestic and sexual violence, family planning options, and sexual and gender identity.

“For me specifically, the important thing about this organization is that we’re trying to make the GSC, the Gender and Sexuality Center give more focus to women’s issues,” Allen said. “Especially because the GSC is also the women’s health, or resource, center.”

Allen also believes that it is important that college students in particular are exposed to women’s and gender issues.

“I think it’s important that people realize that feminism is a contemporary issue,” Allen said.  “It’s still important that people know what the feminist issues are, like reproductive health, reproductive justice and the experiences of women in the health and justice systems.”

Professor Jo Reger, director of the Women and Gender Studies Program and Associate Professor of Society believes that SAGA fills a need at OU.

“I think the students feel a need for SAGA on campus and that is why it is important,” Reger said.  “I also believe it adds an important dimension to students’ education when they participate in student groups.”

The organization also believes that although many advances have been made in women’s rights, society still has a long way to come.

“I think we’re a very rigid society when it comes to gender roles,” Edgerton said.  “Things have changed a lot, but not as much as I would like them to.  It is still kind of drilled into little girls heads that they can do whatever they want career wise, but they still have to be wives and mothers and its drilled into little boys heads that they need to be macho and tough and not show any emotion except for anger.”

Bryan Krall, a junior majoring in biology, disagrees with this sentiment.

“I don’t believe feminism is still relevant in societies like ours today,” Krall said. “Women get equal treatment and if they didn’t their employers would get big time lawsuits on their hands … now if you’re talking relevant in the world, then sure absolutely. Women commonly get abused and have lower status in countries like India and in the Middle East.”

The group is in the process of choosing a new faculty adviser.

For more information about SAGA, contact Jenny Gole at [email protected].